McConnell touts leadership in Web video

Sen. Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) is responding to attacks from his Democratic opponent in a new Web video that highlights his role in averting various policy tangles and cutting deals over the past few years in Congress.

{mosads}The Web ad, “Leading America,” comes a day after Democrat Alison Lundergan Grimes’ campaign accused McConnell of “light[ing] the house on fire then claim[ing] credit for putting it out,” with respect to the shutdown.

McConnell did play a central role in brokering the deal that eventually ended the shutdown, but he also voted against initial Senate bills to end it, which Democrats say was a vote to shut down the government.

In the new Web video, McConnell’s campaign features news clips from the past four years that highlight his role in hammering out various deals, ranging from tax relief in 2010 to the most recent compromise to end the shutdown.

“While everyone else was talking, one man from Kentucky was leading,” reads text overlaying the video.

“Leading America begins in Kentucky,” the video closes.

It’s the latest indication Democratic attacks could be taking their toll on the Senate Minority Leader, who is already deeply unpopular in his home state.

One of his greatest assets has been his seniority in the Senate, and it’s helped him not only take a leading role in brokering deals, but also deliver benefits to his home state.

His ability to deliver back home has waned somewhat, however, as an anti-earmarking fervor has taken control of the Senate with the emergence of the Tea Party. And with a Tea Party challenge hitting him at every opportunity, McConnell has largely been unable to bring spending back to Kentucky.

Democrats have calculated that undermining his seniority could help them make the argument that a political neophyte like Lundergan Grimes would do a better job in the Senate for Kentucky than McConnell has — but the Web video indicates McConnell isn’t planning to let Democrats gain much ground on that front.